Progress Hybrid terrorizes dog....

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fire_man

fire_man

Minister of Fire
Hearth Supporter
Feb 6, 2009
2,716
North Eastern MA
My avatar picture of the family dog peacefully sleeping near the stove was accurate until exactly two nights ago. That night I loaded the stove at 9:00 pm, damped it way down and went to bed. Two hours later, my wife was shaking me awake telling me the stove was "exploding". The alleged Labrador Retriever "watch dog" reacted to some bigger than usual backpuffs that caused the stone top to "pop" and rattle, and the dog then launched herself over a 4 foot high safety gate which separated a still-chewing young dog from the rest of the house. She has refused to go back in that room ever since.

It never back-puffed that badly before, and has run for two days since then perfectly. It was just one of those times a little more air at the right time would have prevented the backpuffing.

Has anybody else had a dog or cat terrorized by their stove??

I guess I will have to change my avatar now...:mad:
 
No pets here to terrorize (thankfully) but I have had some strange puffs on the PH. I figured it was just me :) I think I'm coming to the conclusion that it is just too easy to shut the air all the way down and walk away when that isn't the right thing to do in all cases. Last night I had some little ones that were very odd - I had some floating secondaries on top of the stove then every once in a while it seemed that there was a puff in the ash pan or somewhere down in the bottom of the pile - this would cause the secondaries to go out (like blowing out a candle) for a few seconds then they would re-light and a minute or so later it would repeat. Nothing big enough to get smoke smells in the house or to rattle (or even hear really), but it sure looked odd - the puff blowing out secondaries and tossing burning embers about inside the stove.
 
I've noticed it's much more likely to back puff or "wuff" if I engage too soon (like i did 2 nights ago). I can actually predict it will happen, because rather than increase in temp, the stovetop temp will "hover" around 300F for a good hour before suddenly climbing like a rocket, and then the firebox ignites with a "wuff".

As long as the thermometer placed on the top flue cap reads at least 250, it's safe to engage with little risk of puffing.
 
I had a few backpuffs with the Castine as I was learning to operate it. One scared the bejesus out of me. I'm happy to say I have not had a single backpuff with the T6 after 3+ seasons.
 
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I think Tony nailed it again. The puffing results from engaging and shutting the stove down too soon. I had a bad one last year doing that. I used to try to close things down really fast to eliminate the secondaries and extend the burn. I have since learned to burn the stove the way it was designed. It is a hybrid stove. Secondaries happen (and they're freaking awesome too). I also do not think having nice secondaries rolling results in sub-par burn times. The 17.5 hr burn I had a couple weeks ago, which I could have extended quite a bit longer, included at least an hour or so or nice secondaries in the early part of the burn and probably switched back and forth between cat and secondaries for another few hours while I slept.

I think when you engage and turn it down too soon you can get gases building up in the stove that can suddenly and violently ignite. If you engage hot enough and turn it down slowly, you can still get some minor poof sounds when the stove switches from cat to secondaries, but I think this is normal and doesn't concern me.
 
I concur with Tony's and Waulie's assessment. Would only add that my worst back puff occurred when the hole between the andirons was blocked. So, I also try to keep that hole clear and unblocked.
 
Good info all. I would gladly give up an hour of burn time for the peace of mind of no backpuffs.
 
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OMG....I just had to post this. As I was going to click on this DH let our dog in. We had been moving things around and set a large old poster from Ringling Brothers that I've had for years next to one of the sliding doors. She came in, took one look at the roaring tiger and all of her hair down her back stood on end and she started barking up a storm. We had to hide it from her. I haven't laughed so hard in a long time. I should have gotten a video.
 
eclecticcotage:At least in your case you could just move the poster. The wuffing stove is tuffer to hide! But that is hilarious!
 
Our chihuahua loves to lay about 1 foot in front of my parent's Fireview. She LOVES that stove and LOVES to be warm. But she hates our PH ever since the first "woof" came out of it. Now, she heads to 'her room' - laundry room where her food, water & pet bed are, AND it's the coldest spot in the house - anytime she doesn't like anything the PH is doing. And she will not stay anywhere near the PH if she's in the stove room.
 
My Wheaten stays away from the PH on principle...he doesn't like heat. But he likes the sheepskin rug in front of the stove, and periodically goes and rubs his head in it and growls...the stove doesn't bother him. He didn't like the gunshot noise when the cooktop cracked, though. But that hasn't made him afraid of the stove.
 
On walks with my old golden (sadly passed on now), he had valiantly defended me against a variety of terrors - a small spruce tree (frost-wrapped in burlap) in a neighbor's front yard, an outdoor carpet someone laid over a couple lawn chairs to dry at the end of their driveway, moose carvings in a local park, a big plastic cow that a local dairy had set out in front of a corner store one week.... He was one of a kind - i really miss him...

fire-man, sorry for straying off topic. hope you and your pup find your sweet spots with the new stove...
 
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My Lab is terrified by the vacuum cleaner. The stove has never bothered him.
 
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My sister Christine's Westie wasn't afraid of the vacuum, but he attacked the power nozzle on it. Couldn't stand the thing. Made for fun vacuuming.
 
My Lab bites the vacuum when I roll it out, but runs like a wuss when I turn it on.
 
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Mine isn't crazy about it either.
 
how dead am i if she reads this?
 
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My cat . . . Andrew Jackson (part Maine Coon) actually comes running when he hears the vacuum cleaner so he can get vacuumed off . . . seems to enjoy it.
 
I have had jack russles pretty much for the last 15 years and they are far from skiddish. However, they have been rescues and come with their own baggage. Bryn, who is almost 9 now, we adopted when he was about 3. Not sure why, but he was terrified of aluminum foil. Don't know if it was the sound or the shiny finish but he'd run so fast, his back legs would make him run sideways trying to catch up to his front legs. I broke him of his fear by associating it with things he liked, treats, food, toys etc. I would let him sniff the box, pull a little out, give him a treat, pull a little more off, tear it more treats, etc. it took about a week but now the little bugger will pull it out of the trash to lick whatever was cooked on it off!

Next time the stove is off or dying down, pick her up and sit with her in the room, petting and fawning over her to gain her trust again. She needs to feel safe and hopefully over time she will enjoy the stove again.

Good Luck!
 
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